Ukraine's ambassador to Israel threatened Sunday to block entry for Israelis to Uman for the annual Rosh Hashanah pilgrimage unless Jerusalem "stopped deporting Ukrainians."
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Canceling the visa-free policy with Israel is also being considered, Yevhen Kornichuk said.
According to data, Israel has deported 2,037 Ukrainians since the beginning of 2023, almost the same number deported in all of 2022 (2,705 Ukrainians).
Video: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy arrives at the NATO summit in Vilnius / Credit: Reuters
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said last week, "I listened to the report ... regarding the attitude toward our citizens – immigrants who are in different countries, and regarding visa policies. The things that citizens of Ukraine actually face in the visa issue. The rights of Ukrainian citizens must be guaranteed."
According to Kornichuk, Zelenskyy was referring to Israel and warned that "Ukraine will not tolerate the humiliation of its citizens upon arrival to Israel."
He said it was "unreasonable that we should go out of our way to host tens of thousands of Israelis in Uman, with a high security risk and major logistical effort, while the Israeli government mistreats our citizens."
He called on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to intervene personally if "he wants Israeli citizens to be able to continue to travel to Ukraine as tourists."
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